Walking to your car or through campus late at night doesn’t have to be a terrifying experience. In fact, thanks to the University of Saskatchewan Students’ Union Safewalk there’s absolutely no reason students have to do it alone.

Wait, we have a free safewalk service here at the U of S? We certainly do!

USSU Safewalk operates Sunday to Thursday from 8:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., providing walks to more than 300 students, staff and visitors annually. Safewalk volunteers can be called anytime during the day or night on any day of the week. If they’re not available, a Protective Services officer will come to your assistance.

I remember sitting in the Arts Building computer lab in November 2014, trying to motivate myself to finish a history essay due the next day.

In spite of the notably mediocre performance on that paper, I have a sweet memory from that night — and it wasn’t the large French vanilla that I was loaded up on.

My car was parked two blocks from Bottomley Avenue and it was 3 a.m. when I gathered up the courage to call USSU Safewalk for the first time in my life.

Voila! Within minutes, I was being escorted in an officer’s car. It’s worth noting that a Protective Services officer escorted me since it was after-hours of the Safewalk volunteer service.

Approximately 35 volunteers, all of whom are interviewed prior to joining the service, make Safewalk possible. These volunteers are glad to walk you to a destination as far as 30 minutes away from Place Riel.

If you find yourself in need of a Safewalker, all you need to do is call the service at 306-966-SAFE and a volunteer will readily meet you anywhere on campus or within the prescribed off-campus limits.

What good does Safewalk bring to our campus, you may ask. Well, think about the last time you read an assault bulletin on PAWS. In fact, there was one issued on Feb. 11, 2016 in which the victim’s car was stolen after they were hit on the head.

The exact location of this incident is undisclosed in the notification, but, the crime is reported to have taken place near the Meewasin Trail — an area within the Safewalk radius.

It may very well be true that the incident occurred off-campus, but why risk walking alone to a place on campus late at night? In light of such events, the need for a service like USSU Safewalk is obvious.

However, it must be noted that Safewalk is not a reactionary force against acts of crime. Rather, it focuses on preventing crime in the campus region. Therefore, I have a recommendation on making our life around campus safer.

Here it is — kindly avoid pulling off half/all-nighters on campus. Now before you call bullshit on my all-nighter bit, let it be known that I saw a female sleeping on a pillow on the computer desk the same night I was working on my history essay. Yes, people do pull all-nighters at school.

Still, we all know that essays and exams can be overwhelming and will force a handful of poor souls to do late sittings on campus. In that case, I say choose the time-taking but worthy option of calling a Safewalk volunteer.

If I need a Safewalk volunteer, I normally call them approximately 20 minutes before I think I’ll call it a day. I understand that waiting for a Safewalk volunteer for even 20 minutes on nights before an important deadline can seem like a lot, but without a doubt, a little bit of planning is worth it to keep you safe and free of worry.

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Affan Hasan

Photo: Caitlin Taylor / Photo Editor